Valve-cap



F. RASMUSSEN.

VALVE CAP.

APPLICATIQN FILED NOV 12, 1919.

Patented. 00t- 12,1920.

agiminihifili' UNITED STATES FRED RASMUSSEN, OF BLAINE, WASHINGTON.

VALVE-CAI.

7 Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 12, 1920.

Application filed November 12, 1919. Serial No. 337,458. I H

T 0 all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, FRED RAsMUssnN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Blaine, in the county of Whatcom and State of WVashington,have invented a new and useful Valve-Cap, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to an improved valve cap for the inflation valvesof pneumatic tires and the object thereof is to provide improvedconstruction whereby the valve cap may be applied or removed and firmlyretained in position without the necessity of screwing the cap down theentire length of the valve.

lVith the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention resides in the combination andarrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafterdescribed and claimed, it being understood that changes in the preciseembodiment of the invention herein disclosed, may be made 'within thescope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of .theinvention.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation ofa pneumatic tire equipped with a valve being provided with an inflationvalve 11 threaded externally except for two diametrically disposedflattened portions 12. A cap 13 is also threaded on the reduced end ofthe valve in the ordinary manner.

The cap is designated at 1-1 and consists of a shell of cylindrical formpreferably having its outer end closed and its opposite endtapered asshown at 15 so as to engage the binding nut 16 constituting a part ofthe attaching means for the valve. Secured to the lateral wall of thecap and extending longitudinally from the closed end thereof as shown at17 as by means of rivets or the like, is a spring metal strip 18 of across section as particularly shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings, that is,the strip is of arcuate cross section except that the intermediateportion is flattened as indicated at 19, the arcuate portions 20engaging the threads 11 and the flattened portion 19 engaging one or theother of the flattened faces 12 when the device is in operativeposition.

Normally the strip 18 is outwardly disposed to disengage from thethreads 11 when the cap may be readily slipped over the valve stem forattaching or removing the same. However, in order to effect a secureattachment of the cap there is provided a pivoted cam 21 on the cap nearthe open end thereof so as to operate through a longitudinal slot 22whereby the camming portion thereof may be engaged with the strip orcorrugated jaw 18 to cause the interior ribs or corrugations formed bythreading the inner face of the portions 20 to engage the stem to securethe cap against displacement, as well as to permit it to be applied andthen slightly turned so as to firmly engage the seat thereof. Thecamming member is mounted between the outstanding extremities 21 of aring or band 22 which serves to support the same, the latter operatingon a pivot 23' in the form of a rivet connecting the outstandingportions or ears 21 as clearly shown in the drawings above the taperedlower portion 15 of the cap 14, and said member is provided with afinger-piece 23 at the free end thereof whereby it can be manipulatedwith facility.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. A valve cap for valve stems having threads, comprising a cap properadapted to freely slide over the stem and provided with a tapered endportion, an independent spring gripping member secured within the caplongitudinally from its closed end and extending freely toward the openend thereof, said spring gripping member being adapted to engage thethreads of the stem and formed with corrugations at its engagingportion, a supporting ring mounted on the cap, and a cam pivoted to thesupporting ring, said cap having slots therein through which said camoperates to hold said spring gripping member in engagement with thethreads of the stem.

2. A cap for threaded valve stems having opposed flattened portions,comprising a cap having an open end adapted to freely slide over thestem, a separate spring strip secured within the cap and having aflattened portion and sides bent to conform to the curvasame to hold thestrip in engaged position, 10 ture of the stem and the inner facethereof or to permit disengagement thereof. corrugated to engage thethreads of the stem, In testimony that I, claim the foregoing as a ringmounted on the cap and provided my own I have hereto afiixed mysignature with out-turned apertured ears, a cam memin the presence oftwo Witnesses.

her pivoted between said ears, said cap hav- FRED RASMUSSEN. ing a slottherethrough to accommodate the W'itnesses: entire length of the camanda finger grip- NV. S. BONNALIE,

ping member on the cam for actuating the R. H. SMITH.

